J&J - The no more Tiers formula...

[WaxOnFeckOff]

Another new Fred...

Is it bad to think you almost wish SG really do screw it up, to remove the scales from peoples eyes?

I really feel Scotland needs a change of government someone to actually focus on something else for a while. I'm sick of all the focus on independence at all costs.

Where was your graph from @Would shocking numbers right enough. OK guys bunch up in grumpy corner I’m coming in, got sanitiser mask and 🍷

NS could still lower our tiers sooner than the rUK simply to do better than the rUK.
everyone will just ignore the lower rate of vaccinations if they get their FREEEEEDOM back first.
Also they won't care if it means cases go up, cause y'know, we'd be back to the pub before the rotten English.
Watch this space

In my view there will be no referendum until the SNP are certain of winning. There'll be noise and posturing, but until there is consistent 55%+ support for independence, including the undecideds, they're not going to risk losing twice in ten years.

The slow vaccine rollout is likely far more to do with the bureaucracy within the Scottish NHS than it is with the devolved government's current policies and programmes. That doesn't mean they aren't to blame, just that it is more likely long term structural issues rather than the consequence of immediate decisions. Sturgeon is probably tearing her hair out behind the scenes because Scotland is behind England. This is the worst possible sort of thing to happen to an incumbent government just before an election.

@WouldBeGood

I’m so annoyed by this I’ve put it on my Facebook. People should know.

Me too. With a wee disclaimer to all my nurse, GP and pharmacist friends to say I know they're doing their best, but that it;s a government fuck up

Ching ching thanks for the wine @coquohvan, I've dug out some leftover Christmas snacks and I'll leave them in the middle. Still got the popcorn out watching things unfold.

It's really showing up their incompetence isn't it, if anything they'd want to be in front so they could score those special
political points - so the fact they're so behind speaks volumes.

I've also just read a rumour that GPs have run out of syringes...

My Facebook SNP friends have assured me its 1. A conspiracy by MSM to blacken the SNP; and 2. Part of a Grand plan which will mean that we are freed before England

@WouldBeGood

My Facebook SNP friends have assured me its 1. A conspiracy by MSM to blacken the SNP; and 2. Part of a Grand plan which will mean that we are freed before England

what did I say?

Doesn't matter to the SNP lot as long as we get our freedom back first

Oh dear @Would. Do you have a link to your graph I’m going to do the same. See what replies I get.

Aargh, I can’t find it, I screenshotted it . I’ll try to find the link

There is no point me posting on my FB as I've deleted them all or at least snoozed them. Too painful sitting on my hands trying not to fall out with people I otherwise like or need to keep on side for other reasons. The people i deleted a few years ago were sharing something about the %age of soldiers who died in the war being a higher proportion of scots - i think implying that they'd been sacrificed because they were Scottish. Anyway, bloody sickened me so I deleted them.

I try to keep my FB politics free and I rarely post anything so it's mainly just for keeping up with family and i like to see how folk are doing.

@TheMShip that’s nonsense. One - we are vaccinating the housebound and hard to reach first. That takes time - your district nurse can jag people in a centre far quicker than she can drive round rural Scotland going from house to house.
Two the main reason we can’t get folk vaccinated any quicker cause of the lack of capacity in the NHS. This is both nursing staff and support staff. We don’t have anymore pharmacists to dispense it, we’re training staff to vaccinate (but that means there day job can’t be done) like wise the staff to support the roll out (admin to book your appointment, cleaners to clean, drivers to move the vaccine, healthcare assistants etc. ) all have day jobs. If they move the the vaccination centres who does their job - the tooth fairy??!!

As NHS staff I am working my arse off, I am tired, I have worked extra hours every week as part of my normal job. No I don’t want to go out and do an extra 12 hour shift at one of these clinics, I want and need a bloody rest.

Mass Vaccination Centres should have been rolled out and staffed by the armed forces and the NHS should’ve done the housebound. We barely have enough staff for existing services. We don’t have enough staff to give all adults to jags.

The level of Twitter debate to the lse trade report is similarly high brow - they're in London, therefore they're biased.

Oh and Scotland is going to get so much foreign direct investment when it's in the Eu because it's English speaking, and that FDI will totally replace what's lost from the UK. Desperate stuff!

Oh and look at Denmark, and Norway, they're fine so we'll be fine. Lalalalala.

@NCnotAllThat great points, particularly about the army. The comment by NS just wound me up. It's coming from the us and them mind set. We all know the Scottish taxpayers fund the British army. Perhaps it's because the MoD doesn't fall under her jurisdiction.

I never post politics on facebook - I made one exception and lost two old uni friends as they were staunch Corbyn campaigners and when I disagreed on one post it all got very bad very fast. Twenty years of friendship and now we don't speak.

The thing that is galling about the UK army help is that armed forces jobs and spending is always on the chopping block of things scotland isn't going to pay for when it's independent...

I get why folk are riled but it's hardly surprising that NS would point out that the Army are also paid for by the Scots and not to be seen as a 'favour' from the U.K. gov. She's accepted the assistance but given she is the leader of an Independence Party it's not that much of a shock that she'd want to maintain that stance, is it?

No it's not a surprise that politics and independence is put in front of lives.

There is a history of it. Extra money given by Westminster for the NHS and not spent on NHS, ringfenced money for poverty left unspent and despite telling everyone we need to stay inside to save lives and the NHS, she'd rather maintain her independence stance than prioritise the vaccine roll out which saves lives and takes the pressure of the NHS. And then continue to try to deceive people into thinking they are doing a good job.

It's sickening.

Mass Vaccination Centres should have been rolled out and staffed by the armed forces and the NHS should’ve done the housebound. We barely have enough staff for existing services. We don’t have enough staff to give all adults to jags

Yip, why didn't we plan vaccine centres months ago? Why didn't Scotland train jaggers months ago? Why was NHS Lanarkshire only looking for applications on 6th January?

Logically they knew the vaccine was coming, plan centres and have Jagger's trained ready waiting to start stabbing folk once the vaccine was approved.

England managed to have vaccine centres open first week in January why is Scotland a month later.

Note I say jaggers, you don't need to be a qualified nurse to do injections. Plenty people do it daily with a few lessons and practice sessions.

@anon444877 do you mean the SNP plan to cut right back on the army if they get their independence?

@MrsAmaretto thank you for what you are doing I and many others really do appreciate it.
@gingernets yes all devolved nations pay towards the UK Armed Forces. Its the fact she hasn’t asked for help that has shocked us, it was offer prior but declined, when we are obviously struggling doing the vaccines. No devolved government in my understanding can activated Forces help without UK governments authority, hence why they asked. Mrs Armaretto explains why we are struggling so well.

I really resent the implication that SNP or independence supporters are being duped into believing the Scottish Government are doing a good job. As if we're a great mass of unthinking morons.

We, just like you, are capable of critical thinking and independent thought.

It's also perfectly normal that one might be happy with some things a government does and unhappy with others. I'm pretty sure even the most ardent Boris or Arlene or whoever fan isn't happy with absolutely everything that that person / government does.

As I understood, it was the choice to maintain central control of the vaccine distribution that made the difference. In England I think GPs were mobilised to organise themselves into groups to request and distribute the vaccines for their group.

No one is denying that NHS staff are doing what they can but as said, other distribution/vaccination systems should have been put in place and been ready to start.

Yes armed forces contribution always listed as an area that independent Scotland will save in. NS never has an answer about the job losses that will result.

The latest figures are £2.5 bn of defence spending in Scotland.